Here are Fain’s four predictions:
- Marketers will do more with less by embracing automation: About 61% of marketers are dealing with smaller budgets this year, which has led to the adoption of more automation. As firms get machines to do more of the work previously done by humans, there will be less incentive to return to pre-pandemic staffing levels.
- B2C brands will shift channels: Firms also cut back on open web prospecting, focusing on social and search spending instead. In fact 3 in 4 marketers surveyed last year said they would be using paid social and display. “In order to be successful in 2021, B2C brands will have to learn how to build new marketing models without Facebook and Instagram–and they will need to use machine learning and advanced analytics to figure out how to market more efficiently and lower the customer acquisition cost (CAC),” according to the article
- Machine learning’s growing importance: Firms that effectively adopt advanced automation such as machine and deep learning will be faster to adapt and pivot as well as and more financially efficient. Those that continue to market manually will struggle.
- Cementing brand loyalty: Studies have found anywhere between 45% and 75% of consumers shifted their brand preference during the pandemic. That could be due to product shortages, but may also be due to the growth in online shopping and consumers discovering new brands. Because of this, 2021 will see a renewed focus on keeping these new customers or luring back lost ones.
Read the full article from Click Z.